Tyne Bridge

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Description

Linking the City of Newcastle with the town of Gateshead, the Tyne Bridge is the most celebrated of all the Tyne's bridges. Though only opened in 1928, it quickly won a place in the hearts of local people. It is an icon, both a symbol of Tyneside's industrial past and its recent re-generation. It has featured in films, on television and been the subject of thousands of photographs. Ships from all over the world have tied up in sight of its massive steel arch and millions have passed over it, by car, lorry, bus, tram, motorcycle, bicycle and on foot.

There are other similar bridges, one at nearby Wylam and famous ones in Sydney and New York but none of these can match the Tyne Bridge in the affections of Tynesiders. A new bridge had been proposed many times but in 1923 serious plans were afoot in the two councils on either side of the river to obtain the necessary powers. The bridge was by then urgently needed to accommodate increasing vehicular and tram traffic, and providing employment for hundreds of men at a time of increased unemployment was also a factor. The corporations of Newcastle and Gateshead sought an Act of Parliament in 1924 and with government financial help construction began in 1925. Navigational clearance was always a factor to be considered in bridge building on the Tyne and this is reflected in its height above water. Dorman Long of Middlesbrough were the contractors and Mott, Hay and Anderson the designers, using a modified design based on the Sydney Harbour Bridge*, already under construction for 7 months by the time work commenced on Tyneside, and completed in 1932, over 3 years after the Tyne Bridge.